Mane event: Boho-chic hair

This spring, layer on the lace — and give your hair an ethereal update to match. Here, tips and tricks for 3 bohemian-inspired styles

Siren Song (pictured at top)

To set yourself apart this festival season, swap the flower crown for one made of seashells. Stylist Tahler Johnson created this one with a Bristol board base and shells from a craft store. What better topper for beachy waves?

• Split hair into three horizontal sections, the bottom starting 2-3 inches above the nape of your neck, and the top starting right above the ear.

• “The key to a beach wave is variation in the type of curl,” says Blohaute hair stylist Mandy Ignas. For a full, wide wave, simply wrap the hair around the iron (leaving one inch out at the end) and hold no longer than five seconds. For a textured wave, clamp the iron at the base of hair and turn to wrap. To release, wrap all five fingers arund the handle and pull quickly straight down, without unclampling. Plus, vary the size of your curling iron barrel, but don’t go any bigger than 11/4 inches.

• For shorter hair, use a 1-inch flat iron on some pieces to create a subtle wave: Starting at the base of the hair, flip the section over the iron and hold for a second, pull down a bit and flip hair under and hold, and repeat the rocking motion all the way down.

• For added volume, Ignas uses R+Co. Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste ($28; Neimanmarcus.com) on the top section of the hair.

SUNNY SIDE

Who says you have to hide your bobby pins? Instead, expose them as part of the look — celebs like Janelle Monáe and Beverly Hills Housewife Dorit Kemsley have rocked the look.

• Start by making tight curls with a 1-inch-barrel curling iron, and don’t run your fingers through until the very end. “If you feel like you look like Shirley Temple halfway through, you’re doing it right,” Ignas says. Alternate the direction you twist the iron (toward or away from the face) with each strand. For the face-framing pieces, though, always curl away.

• Ignas’ loves GHD’s 1-inch Curve Classic Curl iron ($199; Ulta.com), which sets the temperature automatically. On an iron with a dial, cranking it all the way up to 400 degrees can be damaging to the hair. Set at 330-360 for course hair, or 275-330 for medium to fine hair.

• Sweep your hair to the side and use a few pins that match your hair color to hold it in place at the nape of your neck. Then, using gold bobby pins from any beauty store, create a pattern over the slicked back hair.

POWER PLAIT

For a unique look, combine two different types of braids. Here, Ignas started with a topsy-tail braid, then finished with a fishtail.

• Prep hair with texture spray. (Don’t have any? Water with a pinch of salt will do the trick.) Spray upward into the hair, against the grain of the cuticle.

• How-to: topsy-tail braid. Pull a small section of hair into pony on the side. Poke a finger through the hair right above where it is secured with the hair tie, and flip the ponytail over, pulling it through the hole. Repeat the process right below, gathering the first section in with the second ponytail, so it’s a little larger. Repeat a third time.

• How-to: fishtail braid. Split you hair into to two sections. Going slowly, take a small strand from one side and cross it over to join the other side. Repeat on the opposite side, going back and forth until you’ve reached the bottom. For video tutorials of other cool styles, check out @Blohaute on Instagram.

• To give a braid that boho look, use a technique called “pancaking”: When you’re about two-thirds of the way down the braid, secure with a hair tie and begin pulling sections from the outside — not the middle — of the braid.

• Leave a little extra length at the end to wrap around and hide your hair tie. For the diffused look, rub hair at the temples, then pull a few pieces forward.